Many sex crimes in Florida involve age gaps, such as when one person is an adult and the other is a minor. We recently discussed how the age of consent in Florida is 18, which is notably higher than in some other states. In Florida, someone must be a legal adult to give consent to sexual activity with another adult.
But what happens if you meet someone and they lie about their age? Say that you are interested in setting up a romantic encounter and you meet someone on an app. They tell you that they are 19, so you make plans to meet up. But later, it turns out that they were only 15. Could you face charges for statutory rape or sexual abuse of a minor, even though you never intended to break the law and believed they were over 18 at the time?
Ignorance is not a defense
Florida law directly states that ignorance of a person’s age cannot be used as a defense in these cases. It does not matter if they told you that they were 19. The only thing the law looks at is whether the person was old enough to consent and whether sexual activity occurred. If that activity did occur and they were not old enough, it is a crime.
Certainly, this can lead to honest mistakes. If you meet someone at a party or online and they tell you that they are a legal adult, you may not ask them for their driver’s license to check. You simply believe them.
But even making an honest mistake is still a violation of the law in Florida, and a conviction could have a significant impact on your future, potentially requiring you to register on the sex offender list and leaving you with a permanent criminal record. If you are facing charges, you must understand what legal defense options you have.
